Posts tagged military

From shortformblog: ilovecharts: The whole North Korean army in one place When it’s all laid out like that in one graphic, it’s pretty huge. Yep. Huge and (mostly) useless, in a conventional war.

From shortformblog:

ilovecharts:

The whole North Korean army in one place

When it’s all laid out like that in one graphic, it’s pretty huge.

Yep. Huge and (mostly) useless, in a conventional war.

news.nationalpost.com

“Women at war, worldwide” | Christian Science Monitor This week’s Christian Science Monitor has an excellent in-depth look at the role of women in militaries around the world. The picture above is of an Israeli soldier. Israel is one of the few countries that not only gives women combat roles—but also drafts them into military service.

“Women at war, worldwide” | Christian Science Monitor

This week’s Christian Science Monitor has an excellent in-depth look at the role of women in militaries around the world. The picture above is of an Israeli soldier. Israel is one of the few countries that not only gives women combat roles—but also drafts them into military service.

csmonitor.com

Generalship in combat is extraordinarily difficult, and many seasoned officers fail at it. During World War II, senior American commanders typically were given a few months to succeed, or they’d be replaced. Sixteen out of the 155 officers who commanded Army divisions in combat were relieved for cause, along with at least five corps commanders. Since 9/11, the armed forces have played a central role in our national affairs, waging two long wars—each considerably longer than America’s involvement in World War II. Yet a major change in how our military operates has gone almost unnoticed. Relief of generals has become so rare that, as Lieutenant Colonel Paul Yingling noted during the Iraq War, a private who loses his rifle is now punished more than a general who loses his part of a war.

From bestselling author Thomas E. Ricks’ article “General Failure,” in The Atlantic.

The piece is an extended excerpt from his new book The Generals: American Military Command from World War II to Today, and will make you rethink pretty much everything you know about the military and U.S. foreign policy in the 21st century.

(via thepenguinpress)

The Atlantic

From politicalprof: One of Mitt Romney’s claims in the now-infamous tape is that we can’t afford to cut military spending any further without endangering our security. So, a little perspective. Do note that almost everyone else on this graph is either an explicit US ally or no particular threat to US interests. When you add them to the US total, it’s pretty overwhelming. What do you call a state that explicitly seeks to maintain military superiority over the globe while maintaining a military footprint on every continent? Hegemony is one word, imperialism is another.

From politicalprof:

One of Mitt Romney’s claims in the now-infamous tape is that we can’t afford to cut military spending any further without endangering our security. So, a little perspective. Do note that almost everyone else on this graph is either an explicit US ally or no particular threat to US interests. When you add them to the US total, it’s pretty overwhelming.

What do you call a state that explicitly seeks to maintain military superiority over the globe while maintaining a military footprint on every continent? Hegemony is one word, imperialism is another.

Thanks, dieyounglivefast! pol102:From adam-wola: U.S. defense expenditure, in billions of inflation-adjusted dollars since 1980. It’s much higher now than during Reagan’s cold-war buildup. (From Mother Jones, using Congressional Budget Office data. More charts there.) An interesting, and powerful chart. But how would this look if we used spending as a percentage of GDP (which has also increased since 1980)? The underlying fact is that we still spend about the same as we did when we faced another rival superpower. But by what proportion? I am happy to answer some of your questions (and maybe a few you didn’t ask). The post-9/11 average for base defense spending is about 4 percent of GDP, roughly the post-WWII average. Fifty years ago, defense spending made up around half (48 percent) of total expenditures, while entitlement spending accounted for about 25 percent. Next year entitlements will be 60 percent of the total budget and defense will be less than 20. This is a great example of how better numbers are often, well, better. The chart above shows defense spending as increasing about 60% from 9/11 to 2010 (from about $400 to $700). If dieyounglivefast is right (and I believe he is), then defense spending has actually decreased about 40% (from 48% of spending to about 20% of spending). What this also means is that military spending has increased, in party because total government spending has increased. The previous graph did not convey this.

Thanks, dieyounglivefast!

pol102:From adam-wola:

U.S. defense expenditure, in billions of inflation-adjusted dollars since 1980. It’s much higher now than during Reagan’s cold-war buildup.

(From Mother Jones, using Congressional Budget Office data. More charts there.)

An interesting, and powerful chart. But how would this look if we used spending as a percentage of GDP (which has also increased since 1980)? The underlying fact is that we still spend about the same as we did when we faced another rival superpower. But by what proportion?

I am happy to answer some of your questions (and maybe a few you didn’t ask). The post-9/11 average for base defense spending is about 4 percent of GDP, roughly the post-WWII average. Fifty years ago, defense spending made up around half (48 percent) of total expenditures, while entitlement spending accounted for about 25 percent. Next year entitlements will be 60 percent of the total budget and defense will be less than 20.

This is a great example of how better numbers are often, well, better. The chart above shows defense spending as increasing about 60% from 9/11 to 2010 (from about $400 to $700). If dieyounglivefast is right (and I believe he is), then defense spending has actually decreased about 40% (from 48% of spending to about 20% of spending). What this also means is that military spending has increased, in party because total government spending has increased. The previous graph did not convey this.

Mother Jones

From theatlantic: North Korea Thanks Its Schoolchildren For Building Such Nice Rocket Tanks North Korea’s official propaganda outlet, the Korean Central News Agency, recently declared the state’s appreciation for all those young school kids who “helped” manufacture rocket-shooting tanks for the People’s Army. The announcement, which coincided with a military parade in the country’s second-largest city to show off the vehicles, also thanked the “Democratic Women’s Union”: Multiple-launch rocket systems “Sonyon-ho” and “Nyomaeng-ho” manufactured with the assistance of school youth and children and members of the Democratic Women’s Union of Korea (DWUK) across the country were presented to units of the Korean People’s Army (KPA) with due ceremony at Hamhung Square in South Hamgyong Province on Thursday to mark the 80th anniversary of the KPA. Those rockets are associated with their will to remain true to the Party’s Songun revolutionary leadership generation after generation and their patriotic desire to make contributions to bolstering the nation’s defence capability. Multiple-launch rocket systems (MLRS, in military parlance) are serious pieces of equipment, meant to fire guided or unguided explosives over dozens or miles. That they were apparently built in part by school-aged kids is a reminder that North Korean society is so militarized — and so exploited — that even children are skilled and practiced at constructing sophisticated mechanical and electronic weaponry. That the state would actually boast its use of child labor for building tanks is a reminder of the extent to which military nationalism has twisted North Korean society.  Read more. [Image: KNCA/Reuters]

From theatlantic:

North Korea Thanks Its Schoolchildren For Building Such Nice Rocket Tanks

North Korea’s official propaganda outlet, the Korean Central News Agency, recently declared the state’s appreciation for all those young school kids who “helped” manufacture rocket-shooting tanks for the People’s Army. The announcement, which coincided with a military parade in the country’s second-largest city to show off the vehicles, also thanked the “Democratic Women’s Union”:

Multiple-launch rocket systems “Sonyon-ho” and “Nyomaeng-ho” manufactured with the assistance of school youth and children and members of the Democratic Women’s Union of Korea (DWUK) across the country were presented to units of the Korean People’s Army (KPA) with due ceremony at Hamhung Square in South Hamgyong Province on Thursday to mark the 80th anniversary of the KPA.

Those rockets are associated with their will to remain true to the Party’s Songun revolutionary leadership generation after generation and their patriotic desire to make contributions to bolstering the nation’s defence capability.

Multiple-launch rocket systems (MLRS, in military parlance) are serious pieces of equipment, meant to fire guided or unguided explosives over dozens or miles. That they were apparently built in part by school-aged kids is a reminder that North Korean society is so militarized — and so exploited — that even children are skilled and practiced at constructing sophisticated mechanical and electronic weaponry. That the state would actually boast its use of child labor for building tanks is a reminder of the extent to which military nationalism has twisted North Korean society. 

Read more. [Image: KNCA/Reuters]

"No military coup deserves a parade" | Boz

Every coup has its defenders, whether Chile in 1973, Venezuela in 1992, Ecuador in 2000, Venezuela in 2002 or Honduras in 2009. Usually, that defense points to a democratic system that is broken, a president who has overreached or a population that demands action. … But whatever the defense, military coups are never a good sign for a country. 

Boz explains why democracies shouldn’t celebrate military coups. Read the rest.

The Political Notebook: Thinking Little: Giving Greater Focus to Small Arms

From thepoliticalnotebook:

Weapons of mass destruction fears, which aren’t invalid, overshadow what might actually be a bigger, and less easy to approach, threat: that of the proliferation small arms and light weaponry. Are nukes the weapons we should be most immediately worried about? I don’t think so.

Not that we…

Some analysts say there are multiple factions within the armed forces, including a large contingent of midlevel officers who are professional soldiers, or “institutionalists,” with no particular allegiance to Chavez’s socialist movement. That has become a source of tension in recent years as Chavez has instituted the new salute repeated by soldiers: “Socialist fatherland or death!”

Analysts believe those midlevel officers would be inclined to insist on a constitutional transition of power in the event of the president’s departure.

In contrast, Chavez’s high command is openly in favor of his socialist project and loyal to him.

From westernhemisphereanalysis:

Civil-military relations in Latin America get very little media coverage lately. That’s so even in Venezuela, where what the military is thinking about Hugo Chávez’s sweeping reforms is a very relevant question.

A piece by AP reporter Ian James tries to take the Venezuelan military’s pulse, guessing — correctly, I think — that the armed forces will move to the forefront if Chávez’s health problems end up affecting governance in Venezuela.

(via adam-wola)

Attention should always be paid to what the military is doing/thinking/saying in highly polarized regimes—especially ones that rely extensively on the military (as Chávez’s does).

google.com

From westernhemisphereanalysis: Bolivian peacekeepers return after a six month mission in Haiti. Bolivian President Morales praised the troops for their “solidarity and professionalism” in playing a part in the UN’s MINUSTAH peacekeeping force (via El Presidente pide a las FFAA estar listas para cualquier emergencia · la-razon.com) Bolivia has been an active contributor to UN peacekeeping missions for some time now, and it’s fascinating to see how the units involved are treated w/ deep respect. While most attention to global politics tends to focus on the impact of “great powers,” not nearly enough has been given to the important role played by small, developing states. Yet, domestically, participation in such missions is quite significant. 

From westernhemisphereanalysis:

Bolivian peacekeepers return after a six month mission in Haiti. Bolivian President Morales praised the troops for their “solidarity and professionalism” in playing a part in the UN’s MINUSTAH peacekeeping force (via El Presidente pide a las FFAA estar listas para cualquier emergencia · la-razon.com)

Bolivia has been an active contributor to UN peacekeeping missions for some time now, and it’s fascinating to see how the units involved are treated w/ deep respect. While most attention to global politics tends to focus on the impact of “great powers,” not nearly enough has been given to the important role played by small, developing states. Yet, domestically, participation in such missions is quite significant. 

la-razon.com